


Face, Fight, Finish

by A_Undomiel



Series: The Bells of Tatooine [5]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate star wars universe, Angst, Couple, F/M, Force Use, Gangs, Gore, Rescue Mission, Revenge, fight
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-17
Updated: 2019-02-17
Packaged: 2019-10-30 13:51:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17829776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/A_Undomiel/pseuds/A_Undomiel
Summary: He reached for her mouth, verocious and unrepentant, forcing her to open and kiss him back. Their tongues wrestled, in fury, and she felt like velvet beneath him. Rey tried to fight, claw and kick, but his massive form encased her whole. The heat swelled between them, on the edge of unraveling.Until he felt that sharp pain on his lower lip, and the warm, metallic taste of his blood. He hissed, backing up, seeing her lips and teeth tinged red, her face frozen like a mask. They were both panting, out of breath, a tone of agony on their chests.Rey propped her neck, her lips almost grazing his. Her eyes were glassy, roaming his face, as she whispered “Go ahead. Fuck me. Just another nobody to add to the list, right?”Fifth episode of The Bells of Tatooine | OST - George Ezra: Did you hear the rain? Available on: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uACnxN2c89c





	Face, Fight, Finish

**Author's Note:**

> The Bells of Tatooine follows Ben Solo, the rebel son of General Leia Organa of the New Republic, and his adventures. After he crashes on the desert planet, he ends up meeting Rey, the young owner of a repair and parts emporium in Mos Eisley. Feeling in debt to her, he decides to stay and help her around the hangar. All the time hoping that the dark he is carrying will leave him alone. Hoping that, like the components and ships she fixes, Rey can someday fix him, and mend him back together.
> 
> This story is comprised of a series of one-shot episodes, some of them based on the weekly Reylo Fan Fic Recs drabble prompts.
> 
> This story was written among a battle with depressive feelings. So any encouragement is welcomed!

 

 

**MORNING**

The light teased her face, rising her from a dreamless sleep.

She felt her eyes crusty and rubbed them. She opened them slowly and her gaze fell upon her green dress, carelessly drooping over the old leather chair she had in the corner of the small room.

Quickly, she pushed the rough spun bedsheet up to look at herself. No, she was not naked: her breast band and panties were still there. There was a sigh, but Rey couldn’t tell if it was relief or frustration she felt upon that realization.

Rey licked her cracked lips and tasted the sweet, stale, flavour of Corinthian whisky - the same she drank at the Festival. But that wasn’t the only thing she remembered tasting.

She placed her hands over her forehead and sighed. Yes, she remembered it. It hadn’t been a dream, she never dreamt after drinking, only collapsed into bed.

 

_They had stopped by the market and gorged themselves on dates and flatbread filled with nerf strips - a delicacy, seldom seen among the merchants in Mos Eisley. This meant the trade routes had gone through this time, undisturbed. They chatted about their suspicions that the skirmish between Hutts and Kanata were the reason for that blessing._

_Afterwards, the cantina. There was music.There was sabacc. Winning. Drinks._

_“You have a difficult time to let go” he told her, his speech a bit blurry, cheeks slightly flushed._

_“I can’t afford it. Too many depend on me”, she answered while staring into the amber liquid vibrating inside the glass. She had her network to think of, her scavengers and their families, that depended on her skill and work. How could she explain that she did not want to fail them, like her parents had failed her. In fact, she was still waiting._

_There was too much smoke, it was making her dizzy._

_“It can consume you” he remarked, his voice turning an octave down and steady. Rey couldn’t fail noticing it. “The pressure”, he continued,”it gets to a point when you just want to go, be somewhere else, away” he waived, like pushing a bad memory behind._

_Rey knew he was talking about him, about the demons he had hid somewhere, or escaped from. Were they there yet? Could she share her anxieties? Her own demons?_

_She remembered when he barged in her shop, how cocky he looked and how he immediately let go of that mask to help her.The first weeks, when they were still going through the motions of respecting each other space. She had work to be done, he delivered._

_But, after a while things began to change. He became restless. No questions asked when he came in the late hours, bruised and bloody, collapsing in the small cot in the cubicle that served as an office._

_“And you end up crashing into my shop, annoying me into a job, and driving me crazy...” she stopped, sensing the weight of his intense stare. His eyes were shining like two black opals - but it could had also been from the cantina lights and the spirits. She suspected to be a mirror to his fluster, and carefully hid it._

_“When are you planning to return, anyway?” she asked, regretting it in the next moment._

_“Return?” he seemed genuinely puzzled at the question, and her heart leapt stubbornly, against her better judgement. He paused the moment needed to register her question and then his eyes dropped, turning to the glass._

_“Are you so desperate to see me leave?” he asked, before taking another gulp. He couldn’t hide the slight tension in the words, at least that was what she had felt through the light mist of alcohol-driven euphoria._

_“Off course not. You make a decent mechanic, and those do not abound in these parts”_

_He grinned, mockingly. “And here I was, hoping that you liked me for my dancing skills, charm and good looks.”_

_“It must be from all the soap you use in the shower” she mentioned, absentmindedly, until she realized she was talking out loud. It was her time to freeze, feeling red all over. The memory of his naked body, glistening under the water, was still very vivid in her memory._

_Ben twisted in his seat, his hand sliding through the counter, his body starting to lean over her. Rey couldn’t bring herself to look at him._

_“I felt you there, with me” he whispered, in that low, vibrating tone that drove chills up her spine. It was the voice he used in the nights when she asked the inconvenient questions. “Tell me, did you like what you saw?” The voice melted over her body just like when they danced at the Lights Festival. Rey felt both lustful and scared of that voice._

_“Well, well, well, look who decided to show up! It's been a while Ren”._

_Rey turned to the gurgling voice of Greedo, who eyed her with curiosity._

_“What? Just one? The guy who has all the ladies at the dice table? It must be serious!”, he mocked._

_Rey frowned, feeling the small but effective sting of jealousy and anger. And what was this name, Ren?_

_She felt a shift immediately, as if something settled around her, a barrier almost palpable. She looked at Ben, who had got up and placed himself between her and the bounty hunter._

_“Greedo. Back to old devices I see.”_

_Greedo cocked his head, trying to get a better look at Rey. Realizing Ben wasn't going to give him the satisfaction, he clicked his tongue and his ears twitched. He raised his beady eyes, noticing the fixed stare at his sleeve, from where two sabacc cards were sticking out. He tucked them in, smirking._

_“Well, when we miss a more lucrative endeavour...is this the reason you haven't been at the pits?” Greedo nodded at her._

_Rey shuddered when she heard the word. The pits were ancient sarlacc holes, in which the ancient overlords built fighting arenas using the creature’s bones. They were used for sport - criminals were judged and executed there, once. Now, they were used for other activities - smuggling, gambling, or worse._

_“Bring her, for luck. I suspect her attributes may be worth fighting for.”_

_Trembling with fury, Ben grabbed Greedo’s collar and the rodian began choking. Rey decided to take matters into her own hands._

_“Relax boys! Here Greedo, have a drink on me” she pushed her glass into his hand, smiling when the sabacc cards fell to the floor. Immediately someone got up behind them and the word “cheater” was heard. Ben let him go and adjusted his collar, while the green man wheezed._

_“Ooops! I would run, if I were you” she whispered, grabbing Ben’s hand with confidence as they marched across the cantina and exited._

_As they ran through the alleys of Mos Eisley, with the sounds of commotion fading behind, Rey felt the same as when they had ran from the Hutts and Kanatas’ fight at the Festival. When he held her hand, her spirit soared high. The feeling was exhilarating, toxic even._

_They arrived at the emporium, out of breath and sweaty. He bend over a bit, gasping._

_“Oooh! I’ll be sick, I’m going to throw up”, he confessed._

_Her heart was pumping so fast, it felt like it could just fly away from her mouth at any second. She couldn’t stop laughing. He raised suddenly._

_“False alarm” he announced, wobbling and shaking a bit. He sighed, catching his breath, and Rey gradually stopped laughing; there was something endearing in the crookedness of his teeth and how his face wrinkled all over when he smiled._

_Rey blinked, her shawl dropping to the ground as she quickly closed the distance and launched herself over him. Ben was taken by surprise, raising his arms just in time to catch her. The result was an awkward kiss, filled with fumes of whisky, teeth clashing and bad breath. But it was a kiss, nonetheless, and Ben felt himself thaw under the pressure of her lips and the tugging of his hair, as if she was holding it for dear life._

_It was over as quick and suddenly as it began. Rey jumped back, clearly embarrassed, leaving Ben awkwardly embracing the night’s air._

_“Sorry! I--I--the drinking---the running” she grabbed her shawl, hastily, and turned around. He was still glued to the spot, his hair sticking out in a funny way. But his face was nothing  but. His eyes were burning, his lips parted and swollen from the bashing she had given them and his body was rigid. He looked menacing. Rey huddled the shawl around her._

_“I shouldn’t have done that. I have too much competition right?” Rey meant to say it as a joke but the trail it left was acid._

_He took two steps forward and Rey took two steps back, a jab of fear hitting her heart. He felt it , as clearly as if she had punched him herself and he stopped, his shoulders deflating. They stood there for what seemed like hours, debating silently what those two moments meant for them- so different from each other, from light to darkness in mere seconds. Finally, he sighed deeply and shook his head._

_“Good night Rey”_

_She wanted to say something different. Her head shouting leave and her heart shouting stay. It was clear that this was a mess. They were a mess._

_“Good night Ben”_

_Rey watched him go around to the back, to use the hangar entrance, back to the small office and his bed. She waited until she heard the door closing behind him; that was when she was certain he would not press further._

_“Kriff, kriff….kriff!” she hissed going through the main door to the emporium and quickly up the stairs, wanting to avoid him at all costs. As she got into bed, she heard him angrily moving around the hangar. The last thing she remembered was how she wanted him to climb up the stairs._

_\-----_

Rey got up and opened the drawer to reach for her clothes. She stopped, looking at the spent tunic and slacks, grey and dull. She closed the drawer with fury.

_And why not? Why the hell not?_

She reached for the shawl, wrapping herself with it. She opened the bedroom door and tried to listen out for sounds coming from downstairs. Sure enough, she could hear the hissing of the kettle in the kitchen, the smell of caff permeating the air and Ben scuffling around, the tools clinking away on the table.

Slowly and cat-like, she slid down the stairs, with her back against the wall. She wanted to make sure there was no one else besides them.

Peaking around the corner, she managed to see Ben standing by the speeder they had worked on the previous day, checking the ribbits around the circuit board switch. Rey blushed, thinking about the shower he took afterwards and the longing that made her reach out and touch herself.

_You need this._

She held the shawl tightly, took a deep breath and stepped into the hangar, the floor beneath cooling her temper. She was almost going around the corner when she heard chiming. Her eyes fell over the pad on top of the tool table, glowing and flashing. She traced back to the steps and decided to hold for a minute.

Ben dropped the wrench and went to the table. He made a sound of exasperation seeing the name flashing.

“Dameron, I told you…”

There was a pause, and Rey felt that same shift in the air, cold and dark, the same she had felt a dozen nights before, when he got back from wherever he went to exorcise his demons.

“General.”

When she heard the word, Rey felt an alien fear gripping her heart. She couldn't help to place a hand over her chest and massage it. Still the pain did not went away and she sat on the foot of the stairs, having difficulty breathing.

“Yes, it's been a while. To what do I owe the pleasure?”, he said tightly.

Rey waited for the exchange to be over. Clearly someone was scolding him because she could hear him tossing and turning the tools on the table with some violence.

“No. Luke can torture someone else. I am done. I have been done for quite a while.”

He was quiet for a few moments and Rey felt her heart racing and a heat creeping up her hears. She reached for her forehead and swiped the beads of sweat already forming. She was agitated, fidgeting.

_What the hell is going on?_

“No. When will you realize it is OVER. I am not going there again.”

Rey startled when something clattered on the floor, with violence. He laughed: a despising, angry and dark laugh. Like he had materialized into a different person. Rey felt her eyes water.

“It's always about protecting the legacy, right?”, he continued, the anger energizing the room in a dark way. Rey got up to leave, whatever courage and decision she had before was now gone.

“Rest assured, she is nothing. No one. Like all that came before.”

Rey stopped mid stairs. She felt the sweat turning cold, a numbing feeling in her hands. It was her. He was talking about her.  

“Don’t bother. Soon I will be out of here.”

She wanted to move, run upstairs but her mind was in shock, heavy, glued to the spot. She gripped the rail hard so not to fall.

“Tico? Since when do you listen to someone beneath you? Aren't you the all knowing general Organa?“

It was Leia Skywalker Organa, General of the Republic, speaking to his son. And they weren't on friendly terms, that was evident.

“I told you, a nobody. And don't bother. I am done with her and with this hell hole. Both turned out to be less fun than I thought.”

Rey couldn't breathe, her throat was so tight. She was having trouble seeing the steps swimming before her eyes, full to the brim with tears.

_Stupid. Stupid girl. Why cry? You knew it would be like this._

Slowly, without a sound, Rey returned upstairs to her room and went into the shower. She reached for the cloth and rubbed her skin raw, until she could see trickles of blood emerge from her knees. The tears kept falling, fat and thick, the nose bulbous, red and snotty. She wanted to scream, to hit someone bloody, to break things.

There was a knock at the door, and her head snapped in that direction.

“Caf’s ready, steaming hot!!”

She battled with responding or not. His voice was so different from the one downstairs. His true voice.

“Later”, she finally answered. Despite the shortness of the answer, it was loaded with dark, angry promise. It wasn't missed on Ben.

“Rey…look, what happened last night...”

“I said LATER” she almost screamed at the door. She felt her heart squeeze and release. A pain that endured and numbed her. He was still there, she could _feel_ him behind the door, waiting.

She opened the water and tilted her head towards the spray, feeling the tears washing away, that layer of weakness dissolving, like all the other nights when her courage and resolve had faltered. This, too, would wash away into that dark pit in the back of her mind, the one she kept locked.

And in the end, it was not about him leaving. Everyone left. It was a feeling she hadn't felt since the times she was under the service of Unkar Plutt.

She felt used.

\----

Ben sipped his caf, thinking about the call and hoping he had been convincing enough to keep his mother away.

“Tico…Kriff, Dameron!” he mumbled between sips.

Somehow, Ben knew his cocky friend had something to do with it. Now he had to create some sort of diversion, perhaps someone to morph into him and gamble at some bar in another planet. Maybe Canto Bight would be suitable for his mothers taste.

But that cost credits. And his family had tapped him out to force him to return and face its destiny. At least, the one they had devised for him.

But he would think of something. He always did: a trait he got from the Solo side. He pursed his lips and forced the hot coffee down his throat, scalding it, the physical pain numbing the memories. Everytime he thought of his father, he had flashes of his past, of the accident.

_No. Of the crime._

He looked at his hand, already gripping the side of the table, his knuckles white. He could hear the wood creak and the tools vibrate and shake. He closed his eyes, focusing on the smell of the coffee, on the sounds of the city outside, on her smile, her green dress and her kiss, however awkward and brief it was.

He opened his eyes. Rey was coming down the stairs, looking gloomy, and he couldn't help but to smile. When he knocked on the door, he felt disturbed by her tone of voice; it felt like a punch. But she had told him about not being used to drink, and the headaches, so he had dismissed it.

“Rough morning?”

She went straight for the caf without so much as a greeting. Filled out a cup to the brim and took a long, deep, gulp. Finally, she turned around and made a line to the tool table, where she started to arrange and select the ones she needed.

Ben was quiet, observing her movements. They were tighter, mechanical. It was if she had put up a wall between them and was purposely ignoring him.

He stepped behind her, so close he could smell the soap she had used, which made him remembered her previous slip. He reached for his pad, still resting over the table, as she became still, waiting.

“You never did answered my question”

She turned around and faced him and Ben was struck with those hazel eyes, so angry and piercing it was difficult to hold her gaze. He smiled, mischievously.

“If you like what you saw”

Her eyes twitched and the sparkle faded, as did his smile. He was taken aback by the reaction. She turned around, reached for a two-foil fusor and gave him a push, walking towards a sand speeder in the back - the next job in line.

“I don't have time for stupid games. There is work to do. The ship is going out today and Ferdy is coming by later to drop new salvages.”

After his mother's call, there was nothing he wanted more than to see Rey, to finally hold her and bury his heart in her hands. From the first time he had seen her, angry looking and wielding her lightsaber, he _knew_ there was something connecting them.

He wasn't ready for this coldness. _Stupid games?_ He had nothing but helped her since he got there. True, there were a few _accidents_ but that was how he dealt with having no money and a kriffload of anger to bury inside. But because of him, she had been able to take more orders, help more people. He had been a part of that too, and by doing it he felt belonging. Something that he had never felt before, in all those years at the Republic Alliance.

“I am not playing games” he answered, curtly.

Rey turned around, her shoulders tense, and Ben saw how she gripped the fusor like a lightsaber. He frowned, confused by the contrast between the girl that had threw her arms around him some hours ago.

“Wrong. This has been a game for you ever since you walked through my door. If you don't want to work, then get the hell out.“

She had never been this aggressive. It was as if he was talking to a different person. Slowly, he walked towards her. She had already started to work on the speeder, swiftly removing the engine cover and with the dextry of experience, removed the joints and bolts quickly, in succession.

“What is going on?”

She dropped one of the wrenches and stopped for a few seconds, before getting up to face him.

“You call yourself the son of a Princess, but you are no gentleman. You are packing dirt and you want me to go down with you...or maybe on you? You drink. You gamble. You come and go as you please.”

His eyes narrowed.That was what she actually thought of him? She sounded hurt, disappointed. He remembered the look on her face, taking his hand and going for a ride on the Koro, how his heart raced seeing her in that green dress.

_Was that a lie?_

He turned around and placed his hands over his eyes, as if he could prevent the anger that was now seeping through his stomach to stay within.

“If I am such a monster, why kiss me?”

Rey laughed, scornfully.

“I was drunk, like you intended, right?”

He moved like lightning over her and grabbed her arms, forcing her to look at him. She squirmed, trying to kick him, but he was not letting it happen this time. She huffed, furious.

“LET ME GO!”

“No. I _am_ tired of our dance. You _want_ me, as much as I want you. I felt you watching me in the shower. I _felt_ you as if you were right there, touching me. Kriff, I wanted to blast down your door and...and…”

“And WHAT? And WHAT...REN?” she screamed at him. That name, the name he used as a mask to hide behind, the name he used in honour of the knights he admired in secret, dark, ruthless and strong. That name felt wrong spoken by her, and that made him even angrier: he couldn’t help baring his teeth, trying to contain those pitch black feelings.

He reached for her mouth, verocious and unrepentant, forcing her to open and kiss him back. Their tongues wrestled, in fury, and she felt like velvet beneath him. Rey tried to fight, claw and kick, but his massive form encased her whole. The heat swelled between them, on the edge of unraveling.

Until he felt that sharp pain on his lower lip, and the warm, metallic taste of his blood. He hissed, backing up, seeing her lips and teeth tinged red, her face frozen like a mask. They were both panting, out of breath, a tone of agony on their chests.

Rey propped her neck, her lips almost grazing his. Her eyes were glassy, roaming his face, as she whispered “Go ahead. Fuck me. Just another _nobody_ to add to the list, right?”

Ben stopped shaking and immediately relaxed his grip, pushing her back with too much force making her stumble and almost fall. Rey quickly gathered herself, cleaning her mouth and rubbing her arms where he had squeezed to hard and trying not to cry, not to shout.

“You listened” he realized.

“I did”

He swallowed, pushing down the lump in his throat. The agony intense.

“The general excels in control” he paused, seeing her eyes expecting, demanding an explanation. “And I am not under it. She will do anything to have that claim over me. Over my destiny, my wants and want nots. And she can be ruthless, if need be. I wanted to protect you.”

How could he begin to explain what happened? What truly happened? She would hate him.

Rey saw the wall around him, shutting him out.

“That’s a lie. You only want to protect yourself. Here today, gone tomorrow: I know the type. Most of them go through this hangar, for me to fix their ships so they can go make a mess somewhere else. Do you think you are the first?”

His eyes sparkled jealousy of all those phantom men that had gone through her life.

“I have lived through drought, famine, abuse...and I came through. I survived. And I swore to help scavengers, abandoned, forgotten...so they would not go through the same. I worked hard to learn, and I work hard to provide them and me.”

Ben felt weak under that weight of emotions. He was lost when he came through her door. She had seen something in him. But now, she only felt betrayal.

“I have no need for tall, dark, handsome strangers to save me. Because that was your plan all along, right? Save me from my nothingness?”

What could he say? That was true and pierced right through him. He did felt like the champion saving her. A nobody that no one knew, a diamond in the rough, abandoned in that forsaken planet. She deserved the universe, not sand and dust in that hole in the middle of nowhere. And he could have given that to her, if not for fear and stupid pride. Still, he remained silent, crushed by the weight of her words and the pressure in his chest.

“Drink whatever you want, gamble whatever you want, fuck whoever you want. I refuse to be part of whatever game you are playing with the General. There is nothing more for me to say.”

She turned around and restarted the work on the speeder. He kept still for a few moments, coming to grips with that unforeseen rejection. She had been light in a very dark place, and now he it dimming at each minute. And he knew what it came after that. Someone payed. Someone always payed.

He wanted to say something before leaving the hangar, but he just let his plea resonate through his body, wishing that it would erase how she saw him now.

Rey just kept working, showing no sign of having felt it.

She didn’t even turned to see him walk out.

 

**AFTERNOON**

 

Rey didn't stop working on the speeder until her stomach rumbled, already midday. She had to keep working, keep moving, with her mind busy with electric junctions, calcinators, hyper drives. Fixing things that were indeed fixable, unlike her heart.

She got up and went into the kitchen, and fixed herself some protein porridge. She noticed her caf cup, left abandoned on top of the counter, and now cold. She discarded the coffee and filled the bowl with water and the protein flour. She saw it puff and thicken in a blink of an eye. It was always something soothing to see, it gave her comfort.

She went for the bowl with a ravenous appetite, as if eating could fill the hole inside. She let out a small whimper, the only one she would allow to escape, her mouth full and the tears falling fat and thick into the porridge. She was alone.   

“Is there anybody here?” a voice echoed through the hangar. Rey startled, quickly drying her tears and settling the bowl, she rushed for the hangar, to meet Ferdy. The Twi’lek had already discarded his goggles and was dusting away the sand from his clothes. He smiled, seeing Rey rushing to meet him.

“Damn sandstorms! I just crossed through one coming from the outer bank. Damn thing almost cost me one of the cargo containers.”

Rey went outside and saw the two containers intact and full. She sighed, happy. Enough work to busy her mind for weeks, it seemed. She looked for the large, flat button that would open the conveyor doors and lower the ramp. Rey went inside the dusty boxes, appraising the loot.

“The kids worked hard! It was a blast for them, hanging around those behemoths. ”

“It’s good wreckage. But I hope they helped after school?”

Ferdy laughed, helping Rey down the ramp and pressing the door shut. They went inside, where it was cooler, and Rey hastily entered the small office. She stopped, looking at the empty bed in the corner. Her eyes trailed to the open cabinet, his clothes and backpack gone.

“Rey?”

She blinked, realizing her friend was staring, and went straight to the small cabinet where she kept the safe and swiftly passed her fingers through the ID pad. She opened the safe and was shocked: half of her money was gone.

“What? No, no, no, NO!” she hit the safe door, nearly cracking the pad. Ferdy went to her and looked at the open safe.

“What is it? Is it all gone?”

Rey couldn’t find the words to answer, the anger she felt burning inside, making her shake all over. A liar and a thief, that was all that Ben Solo was. And to think she had considered to be something more.

“Well played, Ben. Well played. You son of a kriffing bitch”, she mumbled angrily, gathering the credits to pay a nervous Ferdy. He gladly took the money, which he tucked neatly inside his jacket.

“I went by your help a few hours ago, you know.”

Her head snapped and she reached for his arms, shaking him.

“Where did you see him? WHERE Ferdy?”

“He went by me, speeding away into the sand storm. Into the badlands. I thought he was crazy, at the speed he was going, he would get thrown out, for sure!”

The badlands. Hutt territory. What was he thinking? Make a bargain with Jabba for a ship? Perhaps join his syndicate to piss off his mother?

Rey turned once more to the open drawer and the couple of credits remaining. The ship was still in the hangar, so there would be fresh payment coming in. Her savings were secured in another hidden place, upstairs. She closed the safe with violence. Joining Jabba’s gang seemed a good fit for the bastard. They would eat him alive.

“Do you want me to call on the crew? Maybe someone saw him and can follow into his hideout” Ferdy was already reaching for his side pocket and extracting an holopad. Rey reached for his hand and stopped him.

“And risk them getting hurt or lost in the storm? Don’t bother. The money is not worth it. And neither is he.”

Ferdy just hunched his shoulders “Your call, boss.”

Rey smiled at the pun. It was like she ran a little syndicate of her own.

“Can you help me with the unloading and sorting? I’ll pay you lunch.”

 

**EVENING**

 

They took all afternoon to unload and catalogue the parts. Rey felt safe among the parts, the feeling of bolts and metal under her hands, the purpose that she felt in assigning each set of components. There was method and order in that task, and so she could piece together her heart as well.

She was confident. Time and work would mend things back into their proper place.

“Thank you Ferdy. Thank you for your help. And here, take this” she placed a couple of holos in his hand “For the kids”.

His friend rubbed the holos and smiled, placing them in his side pocket. He reached for her hand and shook it.

“You know, Rey, if you need anything, anything at all, you know who to summon. Your friends are with you, and the friends of your friends as well.”

There was a gleam in his eye, that Rey couldn’t quite understand, but she took his words to be meantfull and honest. She shook his hand and wished him a safe trip home.

The double suns were almost on the horizon. Soon, it would be dark and if the storm was coming in their direction, she had to secure the doors and windows. As she passed by the anchored ship, she remembered about the zabrak lord that was late to collect.

She looked outside - the wind was warm and was picking up. People were running hurriedly through the streets: some into the safety of their homes other into the alcohol confort of the  bars. She looked to the west, and saw the first sun clouding behind a red mist, a sign of storm brewing. Her eyes wandered to the road, stretching into the outer banks and beyond. It was if she could see something, a red thread stretching, over the road, onwards into the dunes beyond.

_He can go kill himself if he wants to. Not your problem anymore._

She pressed the large red button to shut the hangar doors and lower the security block, to prevent the sand from coming in. The yellow lights above flickered and she quickly moved to the windows, repeating the process. She had just shut the last one and was ready to move to the front shop to close it, when she heard the front bell chiming.

“Now you turn up. Freaking rich people” she mumbled under her breath. She came down the ladder and moved towards the door that gave access to the emporium. There was no one by the counter.

“Hello?”

There was a movement in the corridor, and Rey walked towards it.

“Your ship is ready to go, but I would advise to wait, there is a storm....”

Rey froze, seeing the black silhouette in front of her, the red light flowing in from the glass door behind. She couldn’t see the face of the person, but she was sure it wasn’t a zabrak commander. The person was using a hooded steel-grey cloak, that rippled and sheen, covering all the way to the feet.

“Are you Rey?”

It was a woman’s voice. It was old, grave and deep; the sort of voice that carries knowledge with it. There was something familiar about it, and Rey felt her heart skip a beat inexplicably.

“Who wants to know?”

The woman stepped slowly into the corridor and Rey stepped back, instinctively. She felt her lightsaber vibrate beneath her loose tunic. The woman raised her perfectly manicured hands and the blue ring on her right hand flashed before swiftly removing the hood.

Rey’s face lighted, recognizing the woman. She was using her silver grey hair in braids, perfectly crowning her head. She had a face that had seen enough in her lifetime - good and bad. The mouth was a thin line, imperial and definitive. But her eyes were deep and dark. Like his.

“Where is my son?”

Rey raised her defences, freezing her expression and trying to control her heartbeat. She reached her arm back, casually, and was able to touch the hilt of the saber with her fingers. She would give nothing away. Leia smirked.

“You can try. But I will tell you this: either you tell me willingly, or I will use other options, if necessary”.

She walked to the stacks and browsed the components, neatly arranged and cleaned. Her threat was spoken as casually as if she was asking for a caf. She picked up one of the calcinators and Rey recognized the piece - it was the same component Ben had asked for when he walked into her life all those months ago. Leia looked at her and Rey saw the calcinator levitate from the old woman’s hand, hover for a few seconds, and then settled in her hand once more.

“The Force is strong with you, I can feel it. No wonder he ended up here.”

Rey shook her head. The Force? Somehow that was both strange and familiar to her. It felt like a name of a long lost relative being spoken again, out loud. Leia narrowed her eyes and there was a slight sly to her lips, cat-like and intriguing.

“Yes, I see. Not yet fully awaken. But we are getting there, aren’t we? Perhaps you found the way, by exploiting my son?”

Rey felt anger pilling up and the lightsaber feeling heavy on her hip. “You have said enough already. Leave. Please.”

Leia’s face turned in a second into something menacing. She took two steps and stood before Rey, who was unable to move, as much as she tried.

“What are you doing to me?”

“Come now, _girl_ , I asked you a simple question.”

Rey felt that jittering feeling of oncoming panic, gripping her heart. As Leia raised her hand towards her head, Rey saw a light flashing before her eyes and a voice, whispering.

_Focus_

She bit her lower lip until it bled, using the pain to pull away from that hold, feeling it loosen a fraction of an inch. She closed her eyes and imagined light, twisting, spinning, faster and faster. And releasing it.

She opened her eyes and saw Leia open hers as if she had been bitten. The immediate result was that she released Rey, who pulled away immediately, gasping for air.

“That was a surprise” she calmly stated, composing herself into the regal pose of before. “For a scavenger, that is.”

Rey was now beginning to understand why Ben refused to return home.

“There is trouble brewing. He needs to return to his rightful place, with his uncle and lead the Corps. Surely you must understand this - making him stay will only result in mayhem.”

Rey snorted. The notion of Ben Solo being a leader was just too ironic. “I pity whoever falls under his orders. And I am not making anyone stay.”

“I know my son like the back of my hand. He went to great lengths to keep me from knowing where he was. Who he was with”. She looked at Rey from top to bottom, analysing every hair, every breath, every twitch. “You are playing a dangerous game. It's better you let him go.”

Rey was confused. All that she remembered were the words he said to his mother, spoken with such venom and despise. Remembering that only made her blood boil.

“Let’s get this over with: your son came through my door, penniless and demanding I repaired his ship. I offered him a place to stay in exchange for his help around the hangar, which he did, poorly.”

Leia snorted at the story. “That arrangement suits you fine, doesn't it? I wouldn’t expect nothing else from a scavenger. Always looking for something to plunder and exploit. You remind me of Ben’s father.”

Rey bit her lower lip, trying to control her temper: without succeeding.

“I rather be a scavenger than a princess with a good-for-nothing son.”

Leia’s face turned feral and Rey felt her throat constrict, just so slightly, making her gasp for air. And then, release. Ren doubled over, coughing. Leia breathed deeply - her sole apology for conducting so rashly.

“I do not have to endure your petulance. A Skywalker demands respect.”

Rey coughed, trying to catch her breath. She looked at Leia, wondering if she should try a second turn at that focus exercise and ram the woman up to the stacks. “I don’t know where your son is”,  she spat “and I don’t care. He took off this morning with my money. So you can add stealing to his leadership skills.”

Leia raised an eyebrow and her face transformed, disappointed. In that moment she looked old, aged beyond her years. There was a genuine look of sorrow and concern across her face; but it was gone as soon as she felt Rey’s intense stare.

“Leave. There is a storm coming.”

She straightened her shoulders and pushed pass the General towards the door, which she threw open. The old woman finally moved down the corridor and crossed the door’s threshold. She stopped and turned to look at Rey for what seemed like hours; noticing the light in them,her steel gaze softened, just so slightly.

“I apologise for coming on you too roughly. I had imagined someone different.”

“I can say the same of you.”

Leia smiled a genuine smile. And then she became regal, once more.

“I trust that if you see him, you will tell him to abandon this folly and return to his rightful place?”

Rey’s answer caught in her throat and she forced her mouth shut. What she truly wanted to say would only bring more misery. She looked to the street, the wind and the sand already forming a mist that made the buildings disappear and the horizon blur.

“He hates sand” she said, turning to look at Leia once more. The woman nodded, understanding, before advancing into the swirling wind and into the alley, towards two New Republic officers that were standing guard.

Rey watched her until they all disappeared in the red mist.

 

**NIGHT**

 

It took awhile for Rey to properly take stock of what had transpired that afternoon. Her body still held the marks of that encounter, of having felt the Force of General Leia Organa being pressed upon her spirit. She felt like a bantha had trampled her. And although her body was spent, her mind was racing. Because of her words.

There was the part about Ben and her adamant will for his return. Someone could dismiss it as a concerned mother just wanting to control the rebel son; but Rey felt something else. Something dark, a resentment, rotting underneath those pleas. Whatever Ben was running from, that darkness was part of the reason - she was sure of it.

Could he have lied? About Tatooine, about her?

_I wanted to protect you._

She shook her head, trying to dismiss that notion. If so, why steal her money? The only reason would be to get out with a full pocket, to gamble away somewhere else.

She grabbed the wrench and then placed it down again, defeated. Something was off. At least now she could understand his odd behavior, not much different of her own, once.

“That's right.”

Rey gasped, twirling on her heels, the lightsaber easily falling into her hand and the blue hue glowing. , ready to fight. The neon glow rested upon Maz Kanata, walking carefree as if she was a customary visit to the Emporium.

“I remembered how it was with you. Any excuse to pick up a fight.”

Rey frowned at Maz’s ability to read her mind. Yes, she too talked of the Force sometimes.

“What is this?”

Maz laughed, patting her pants for dust and sand from the storm that was still raging on outside.

“I sneaked in. Just the way I taught you.”

Rey relaxed, shutting off the lightsaber. Maz and her had crossed paths before - one could not avoid clashing into a syndicate business if you were a scavenger. It was a most probable hazard that came with the job.

Maz had taken a like to her; trained her and taught her a few tricks. In return, took advantage of Rey’s _persuasion_ skills to get out of tight jams with the Republic Corps. But still, Rey was always on her toes with her - it seemed that one day she would come to collect all that good will.

“I’ve heard you had a visitor this afternoon”

Rey clasped the lightsaber to her belt, under the watchful eye of the tiny woman. She sighed and signaled her.

Maz followed Rey into the small office in the back, where she reached for the caf machine, turning it on. As Maz entered the tiny cubicle, she noticed the cabinet door opened, and its contents empty. Rey sat over her desk and crossed her arms firmly over her chest, waiting for the caf to heat up.

“You know I would never talk about your feuds with the Hutts. At least not to a General of the Republic, of all people”

“Leia doesn't know when to stop”, Maz retorted, and the tone of annoyance didn’t go unnoticed “Did she hurt you?”

Rey reached with one hand for her throat, massaging a bit while offering a cup to Maz, who took it, her eyes narrowing.

“She used the Force on me. I was able to fend her off somehow.”

Maz arched her brows, surprised. Then, she took a sip of the caf and leaned on the door, watching the empty space inside the cabinet. Rey noticed.

“She was looking for her no-good son”

“And did you tell her? Where he went?”

Rey frowned, not expecting that question and the concern she heard on Maz’s voice.

“No”

“You know in which direction he went. You could have told her. But you didn’t”

Rey frowned. _Ferdy_.

“I just want the satisfaction of hearing about how the Huts tore him apart. It serves him well, for taking my money”

Maz smiled and took a long gulp from the mug, before taking a few steps and handing it over to Rey.

“All of this because of money? Or did he take something else?”

Rey held the mug in her hands and took her time looking at it, letting the question sink. She finally looked at Maz. _My heart and my pride_ , she wanted to say, but those words never left her lips.

“Maz, you know something. Tell me”, she pleaded.

Kanata reached for her back and took out a lightsaber, which she offered to Rey. She was surprised to see it, especially since she knew how much one was worth. It had a black hand guard and it was cut at a sharp angle. Rey looked at Maz, wondering how she had got it.

“That weapon was given to me, for safekeeping. Until its rightful owner claims it.”

“What do you mean? You gave me…” Rey quieted “You gave me mine.”

“Yes, I did.”

Her fingers threaded over every ribbit of the weapon, feeling its weight and warmth. Her own saber was shaking, beside her, as if recognizing the presence of another of its own. Rey felt her fingers numb, itching to wield it.

“You feel it, don’t you? It sings to you, that saber. With it, you feel more powerful than ever”

It was true. She did felt it. And that was why she refrained from using it often. Because everytime she held it, it was if she was pulled into a vacuum, where thoughts and actions were controlled by something else than her, emboldening her into things she wouldn’t normally do. Could that be the Force, talking through her?

Rey returned the odd looking saber back into Maz’s hands, suddenly afraid.

“The Force is all around us. Biding the universe together. Some, like me, can hear it, sense it. But others” she paused, looking intently at Rey “can tap into it, shape it and bend it to their will” she answered quizzically, while returning the strange saber to her hidden pocket.

“I am just a scavenger Maz”

“When you live as long as I have lived, you see the same eyes in different people”

Rey felt a shiver running up her back all the way to her neck. Her skin prickled and she felt that cold, clammy sweat forming on her shoulders.

“Has the owner showed up yet?” she asked, shaking the shivers away.

Maz chuckled. “Oh yes. But there is still a while to go before he can claim it.”

 _He?_ Rey thought. Images flashed before her eyes in rapid succession, too quick to make sense of. A green and blue glow, warping in the speed of light. An explosion. Leia; the calcinator floating, right before she threw it at her. Rey jumped.

“Ben?” she whispered, not able to see Maz’s reaction. Almost immediately, Rey felt a jolt of fear gripping her heart, her stomach clench and her insides shake. For a moment, she thought she was going to throw up. She felt dizzy and reached for the table, for support.

Maz frowned, her voice rising a layer of intensity. “Like a wounded animal, he hurts back. _Someone always pays_.”

The pain was excruciating, like someone had managed to place a hand inside and iank at her entrails.

“The pits.”

Rey turned around, her eyes wet and mouth quizzy.

“What...?”

Maz sighed, placing her hands on her hips. “Ben took your credits to fight in the pits.”

Rey felt that heat of anger, making her fidget. She slammed her hand on the table willing the quizziness away.

“Why not leave?” she hissed between the pain.

Maz smiled and her eyes softened behind those odd looking goggles.

 _You know why_.

Rey calmed down, breathing deeply. She felt a rubor reaching her neck and she pulled the collar of her tunic away from her damp skin.

“Someone who is in pain, hurts. Themselves and others. Willingly and unwillingly” Maz resumed in a serious tone. She saw a pair of sand goggles hanging on a rusty nail and reached for them.

“Go”, Maz said, pushing the goggles towards Rey.

The scavenger felt the weight of the task being placed upon her shoulders, like she was indeed a jedi knight of old. Her left hand reached for her goggles, then mask and coat, while the right skimmed the metallic casing of her lightsaber, hanging beside her.

She felt her arm numb, her fingers stinging.

“What if you are wrong? What if he is not worth it? Like mother, like son?”

Maz signaled Rey to come closer. The small alien carefully pulled the mask over Rey’s mouth, covering her face properly, to fight the sand and ilude the runts that populated the pits.

“Stop looking at the stars, Rey” she whispered “The belonging you seek...its not behind you. It's ahead.”

\----

The air, loaded with a coarse red mist twirled around her, as the sand speeder crossed the desert in the direction of the pits.

Her hands were gloved, but she felt them cold, the nervous twitch forcing the controls and the speeder to draw out every once of speed. The engine rumbled in effort, spewing out the storm through its stabilizers, but it still pressed on. For a stupid second, Rey though she had to make a discount for the owner: this was perhaps not what he would consider a “test ride”.

Rey felt the machine being pulled to a technical limit as she made it run over a massive dune, against the wind. She had too. It was the quickest and most hidden way to the pits, over the valley, beyond.

As she came to the dune crest, she saw the lights hovering one of the massive pits left by the sarlacc. Ancient crime lords have uncovered the bones, cleared a huge circular stage and set the bones against the walls, like an arena.

In there they had executed people. Families. Fed them to rankors and other beasts. It was a place for initiation, for prize disputes. From that to placing bets on who would survive or die was a very short leap.

It was a place of darkness. She felt that familiar vacuum feeling, pulling her into doing things she did not want to do. Quietly, she guided the speeder around the crest, into a small depression, just beside one of the entrances. She could hear people yelling and whistling, grunts and shouts of pain. Her stomach knotted.

She moved between the different speeders and two-person ships parked in front. She recognized a couple of them, from people that scavenged for her. Her eyes fell over the double trident symbol painted in red - the Hutt’s. Suddenly, the hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she turned quickly, her hand closing around the throat of the man in front of her. He jerked, dropping something to the ground.

Rey was about to squeeze him enough into fainting when she realized who he was.

“Ferdy!” she whispered, releasing him “What are you doing here?”

The man cleared his throat and took a big gulp of air, while Rey pulled him down, crouching among the ships. He reached for the piece he had dropped to the ground, and Rey recognized a battery.

“Are you kidding me? Are you out for parts, here?”

The Twi’lek grinned, throwing the battery far away to the back and crouching down again.

“No. I just don’t like Hutts” he winked “Maz sends her regards” and then he ran towards a path that curved down and around the arena, disappearing into a jumble of rocks.

Rey’s head snapped towards the arena. There was a sudden clamour coming from the pit, part cheering, part swearing. A voice blurted from a speaker somewhere in sand dialect, which she understood perfectly.

“Remove the razorback and don’t mess it! That’s good meat”

Rey approached the entrance of the pit, and stayed with her back against the arenite wall. The large circle arena was about 150 yards across. She observed the people scattered around it; most she recognized from Mos Eisley, but there were a lot of gang members. Some women and young men too - forced to watch by their owner.

Inside the pit, carnage abounded. There were at least two bodies and two injured, leaning against the bone clad walls, contorting in pain, waiting for the fight to be over and a winner declared.

Two amanins dragged an enormous, lifeless, razorback into a gated door of the arena. The enormous boar like creature was bleeding profusely from a gash in its belly, and the blood was leaving a red track behind it. From the look of some limbs scattered here and there, the razorback had not be the only creature roaming the battle floor.

“Two fighters remain. Gizman and Ren. Place your bets!” the speaker shouted.

There was commotion around her, people rushing towards the small bookkeepers, credits falling into boxes and tokens being exchanged. Two jawas were returning from the bookies and sat in front of Rey, in heated argue.

“You are a fool! I would soon bet all of our droids on the BG.”

“You said Ren would fall first and he is still going. I am making more credits than ever. The man is a machine, nothing brings him down.”

“Look at him, fool! He is injured, he won't’ last. Listen to me” he said, pushing his companion close “The Hutts will not let him win, no matter what”

Gizman was one of Jabba’s gang members. If he was there, it was because Jabba was betting on a sure win. He was not counting on facing a mad, angry man, bent on self-destruction.

Rey followed the blood trail on the arena floor. Gizman was spitting to the floor, and Rey noticed it was red. He towered three meters high, his massive torso bare to show off his disform mass of muscles, sparking with sweat, blood and wounds. There was a air of smugness and confidence that she could identify with Hutt’s goons.

Her eyes then moved to the other side of the arena, until they rested on the lone fighter, to her left.

He was dressed in his customary black. Sleeveless, wearing arm guards of black leather strips. Shirt torn and ripped, glistening from a wound across the abdomen, wet with blood. He was haunching, panting like an animal. She could see the tension of his shoulders even from the distance. And that black helmet. Where had he got it? It covered his whole head, and the visor was split into three silver slits across his eyes. It was crude, but effective in its purpose.

Seeing his strength falter, with Gizman laughing and pointing his axe at him, shouting terrible promises of pain and mayhem, a sudden panic gripped Rey’s throat and she felt paralyzed.

Ren suddenly froze, and his head snapped to the right. Rey’s breathing quickened, and she could feel the blood like it was seeping from her own body. She could smell it, feel it on her fingers. Her mouth filled with saliva and there was a faint buzz inside her hears. The lightsaber felt so very heavy on her side.

_He could feel her._

“No more bets! Stop all bets! Fighters, at the ready!”, big brother shouted through the speakers, to be followed by cheers, swear words and whistles from the crowd. The two jawas decided to see the combat from a closer point of view and Rey followed, trying to look inconspicuous but feeling his eyes  following her every move.

“Fighters, begin!”

BG roared and ran towards Ren, the ground shaking at each step he took. The axe was raised above him, ready to swing down over the helmet. Ren crouched and rolled to the side, just as Gizman came down with the axe, that lodged on the ground with a loud thump.

Meanwhile, Ren had got up ran towards the massive Moggonite, a metallic quarterstaff with dented edges materialized from his back, and found its way into his hands. He jumped, twirling the staff and directing its edge to the joint between arm and shoulder blade. Rey could see what he was doing: not being able to compete with a mountain, he was first trying to make sure the mountain couldn’t hold a weapon.

However, he jumped just as BG’s arm came around, knocking him mid jump, making him land awkwardly on his back. Ren shouted, feeling his wound stretch as he grabbed to the straps of the axe guard, on Gizman’s back.

Rey continued her approach to the arena entrance, where the bones interlocked in a way that left just enough space for someone small to go through. She crouched, looking into the arena.

By now, BG had recovered his axe and they were now circling each other, trying to assess their next move.

“You are bleeding, Ren. Give up, or you will never leave this arena alive”

Ren straightened, grabbing the staff with both his hands and widening his stance, firming both feet on the course sand of the arena.

“I find your lack of faith disturbing”

His voice was distorted, darker, like a complete stranger. But Rey noticed a sadness, underneath. Like someone resigned to its fate. But why this?

_I will never return. Never._

His voice came into her mind, like all the other voices she heard from time to time. There was no going back for him. He would keep on running; the only reason for him to stay had been her.

_You._

Rey gripped the crevice hard, her heart beating frantically as Grizman charged once more, apparently using the same technique, relying on brute force. But Rey could sense something wrong and she muttered under her breath.

“He will trick him”

Sure enough, Ren rounded and prepared to let BG spend his force and loose his stance, staff at the ready, when suddenly the Moggonite switched the position of the axe, caughting Ren by surprise and hitting him on the side, right next to his wound. He shouted in pain and fell to the ground, just as BG switched the axe position again.

Rey felt paralyzed, between jumping into the arena and risk both of them getting killed by the Hutts, or stay and watch him die.

_Focus_

She remembered the energy, back at the emporium, when Leia had attacked her. She focused on that turbulent energy, that ball of concentrated light. She pursed her lips, seeing it grow in front of her and then, release it.

Grizman yelled in pain, reaching for his back and releasing his grip on the axe just enough. Ren coughed and pushed himself up, grunting in pain and stumbling. The crowd was roaring, people yelling “cheater”, sensing something off. Rey looked up to the people and noticed movements around the arena - Hutts men - and, far in the back she saw Ferdy, moving alongside the wall, behind them, and into the grated entrance that led to the creature pits.

“He is up to something” she muttered.

Back in the arena Ren and BG were already brawling, Ren diverting every stroke of BG’s axe, trying to reach for the wounds scattered across the Moggonite’s chest. Rey could feel the vacuum again, the dark energy with every clatter of weapons, with every shout. Ren twirled the staff around, the sharp end tearing a gash across Gizman’s belly. Part of the crowd cheered, the dark, black blood spewing the arena.

She felt the frenzy building until it exploded.

“ENOUGH!” the vocoder erupted.

Ren raised his hand and Rey saw BG gasping, reaching for his neck, his face becoming purple and the tongue lolling out. He was doing the same movement as his mother did with her, back at the emporium. Rey looked back, Hutt’s crew already reaching for the blasters. It was now or never.

She ran in their direction, seeing the massive form of Big Gizman starting to float off the ground.

“Stop!” she shouted, that ringing in her ears becoming louder as she approached him until finally, she rammed him, throwing off his balance and he fell to the ground together with Gizman.

“What is this? A desert rat wanting to play?” a voice blurted out the speakers.

She stood above him, panting, looking down to his mask, still firmly set. His breath had quicken, and he made no effort in trying to hide the wound on his torso. It was bad. Really bad. He would bleed to death if they did not get out of there soon.

“I thought you did not want to use your mother’s tricks”

He kept quiet, waiting for her. She finally sighed and extended her hand, which he took, shaking. He finally got up, and when she knew he could stand, she went to BG to check if he was alive.

The crowd was roaring by now, demanding the result to be announced. Others were yelling cheater and demanding justice. Rey crouched by Gizman and checked his face - it was no longer purple and his lips seemed healthy enough. She tapped on his shoulder.

“Oi, big fella. All right?”

Gizman’s eyes fluttered and then opened. His face contorted in pain.

“I wasn’t...expecting that. A Force user, here?”

Rey was thankful for her mask and goggles that wouldn’t betray her surprise and concern. Now, Jabba would knew about a Force user, and he would look for them. Quickly, she pressed her hand on GB’s shoulder and focused, once more.

“You can’t fight any longer. You are too hurt. He hit you on the ribs and you couldn’t breathe. Do you hear me? _He hit you on the ribs and you couldn’t breathe_ ” she focused on the last phrase, seeing Gizman’s eyes becoming wide and glassy.

“He...hit my ribs…I...couldn’t breathe. You are right. I can’t fight” , raising his arm as he said the words, making the signal to abandon the fight. The crowd erupted in cheers and shouts, people were running towards the bookies, to collect their money.

Rey helped Gizman up, as best as she could, until he was sitting down and the amanins arrived.

“The fight goes to Kylo Ren! Clear the arena for the next round!” the megafone shouted.

Rey walked towards the black clad warrior. “Is this what you turn into when you disappear from Mos Eisley? Off to some fight club?”

He didn’t talked. His hand was over his wound, pressing it so to control the bleeding. But Rey could see his gloves already becoming wet with blood. He was about to answer her, when the voice of Jabba was heard on the arena.

“Kylo Ren...are you sure the fight is over?”

At this signal, the Hutt’s goons jumped into the arena, their blasters at the ready. Rey immediately stood before Kylo, trying to shield him.

“Get out of here, scavenger” he whispered angrily, trying to make her leave. But this close, Rey could sense something else behind the heat of his words: the fear for her, his concern. She smiled, underneath the mask.

“You don’t get to talk. You lied and thought it wise to steal my money”

“I meant to give it back, with interest. For all the trouble I caused you”

“You are worth nothing for me dead”, she spat.

Rey took two steps forward, seeing Jabba’s men drop to the ground and coming closer. Three...then five...seven in all.

The men rushed towards them and Rey had no other option but to give into the drumming, and the vacuum that pulled her into fight, into that dark pitch where she was no longer herself. Her hand found the lightsaber strapped to her leg, she took it out and ignited it, seeing the surprise and the confusion in the eyes of the men that were charging to get her. She shouted back, an angry, devastating scream fill with frustration and madness.

Kylo pulled his quarterstaff forward and they stood there, momentarily back to back, rounding their enemies, together. And with that movement, Rey felt more in control of herself, of her movements and certainties. She felt she belonged, just like Maz had said.

The first man fired a shot, and she diverted it with the lightsaber easily, while Kylo launched the staff forward, successfully sending his opponent’s weapon flying away and hitting him with a kick on his chest. He curved the staff in an easy swoop and knocked another one on the teeth, sending him back with a spray of blood out his nose and mouth.

Rey kept brandishing the lightsaber left and right, effortlessly, like she had been practicing every day of her young life. They kept firing and she kept diverting the blasts, eventually being able to ricochet a couple back to the original gunman.

Suddenly, someone screamed and Kylo saw the man directly in front of him rising from the ground, like he had been snatched by a hook. Everyone turned, as the giant purple mantis raised on its haunches and severed the man in two, using its front claws. Blood and guts sprayed everywhere.

That was enough for the crowd to disperse and run up and out of the arena. Jabba was still screaming on the speaker, ordering his men to get the lightsaber at any cost.

Another two mantises emerged from the cave, and went for the men closest to them before they could reach Rey, who was still fighting a tradoshan, who she recognized as part of the swoop gang Jabba used to prey on scavengers around Tatooine.

She kicked the reptile humanoid before jumping to avoid the mantis claws, as it swoop down on her. She quickly pivoted, the lightsaber slashing the purple armour. She was expecting a quick cut, but it did not happen, the creature’s skeleton was as thick as durasteel. The beast  screeched, launching itself over Rey and nearly taking down the tradoshan, who hurried to escape, reaching for one of the blasters left abandoned by his companions and shooting the beast that kept on pursuing him.

Someone whistled two short whistles and Rey recognized Ferdy, waiving from the benches and beckoning them to run towards him. Quickly, he crouched to avoid incoming blaster fire: Jabba wasn’t giving up. Rey turned to look for Ben, who was finishing his last opponent and was now trying to face up one of the mantis. He kept the quarterstaff between him and the animal, and he was slowly backing off.

Suddenly, he released the staff and projected his hand forward. The mantis reared up, shaking its head and waving his claws frantically, disoriented. He took the opportunity to limp towards Rey, reaching his hand just as he was about to collapse.

She was able to drag him into the safety of the inner arena circle, just as the mantis started to go after them again. Ferdy quickly reached them, and helped them go around the inner circle, and right into a corridor that led to the parked speeder.

“Don’t worry, Maz’s people are on it, look” he said, pointing into the scattering crowd. There was a massive brawl erupting around the bookies, people claiming for their credits while the jawas tried to escape the commotion. Meanwhile, one of the mantis had been able to climb onto the stands and was pursuing a couple of Jabba’s thugs that were still shooting. The commotion would give them enough time to escape.

Rey and Ferdy helped Kylo to mount the speeder, with Rey taking the front seat and going for the controls. The engine rumbled, alive and she smiled. Her hand went to Ferdy’s.

“Thank you my friend. I won’t forget this.”

Ferdy placed his hand on top of hers and beamed at her. He was only happy to be able to help a friend. “Quickly now, before they find out I took the batteries from their bikes!”

Rey nodded, pressing her foot forward and swerving the speeder around, into the gallery that would eventually lead her into the open desert. She felt his hands closing tentatively around her waist, and his helmet resting on her back. She reached for his hand and squeezed it.

“Don’t die on me now, damn it!” she shouted, hoping that he could hear her.

 

**DAWN**

 

Rey kicked the door of the hangar with enough violence to open it ajar, in order to be able to drag Ben’s limp body into the garage. They had crossed a remnant of the sandstorm on the way back, which she considered a blessing - it would cover their tracks.

She huffed, feeling him becoming increasingly heavier, as she dragged him into the back, towards the tub she had to chrome parts and do oil baths to the occasional droid. It was long and deep enough to accommodate his figure. She propped him against the wall of the tub and he immediately moaned in pain.

“Good, your alive so I can beat you senseless for this stupid, stupid stunt. Lets get rid of this”

She reached for the metal clasps underneath the helmet and pressed them. First the mouth piece came out, leaving enough space to remove it completely. She threw the helmet aside and it rolled across the floor with a dark clatter.

His eyes were closed, his lips dry and swollen. He was even whiter than usual, which meant that he was losing a fair amount of blood. Her fingers trailed down his body, from neck, down his collarbone and breast, finally resting on his stomach. She riped open the shirt, and a large portion of caked blood came out with it, making the wound seep again. She rapidly stripped her outer tunic and pressed it against the wound.

“Ben. BEN!” she shouted, seeing him unresponsive. She was ready to slap him, when his hand shot up and grabbed her wrist.

“Don’t” he answered, his voice clear and definite. He released her wrist and his hand came down onto her tunic, which he pressed against his stomach.

“I don’t have enough bacta patches for this. I have to stitch you and put you into the tank and pour a gallon of bacta and restoration fluid, and hope for the best.”

Ben smiled gingerly “I am at your mercy”

She smiled ironically and went to work. She filled the tub all the way up with hot water and went into the medical cabinet for the supplies she needed. Afterwards, she helped him take off his clothes until the only thing left was his underwear. No time to blush this time, it was worse than Rey expected.

He had taken a beating so extreme, that she wondered how come he was still talking, let alone breathing. He had to have internal damage, it was impossible not to. She just shook her head as the needle entered effortlessly into his flesh, again, again and again. Her fingers, her chest, her arms were smudge with blood but she did not mind.

Finally, she poured the medicine into the tank and saw the liquid mixing with the water, becoming the colour of bantha milk. Soon, the mixture began bubbling, meaning it was active and working. She squatted down, and placed her arms underneath his armpits and palms on his back, heaving him towards her.

“Now, push up, push up damn it!” she pleaded; and he obliged, with the little force he had and suppressing a scream from the pain on his abdomen. Slowly, he was able to bring one leg over the tank and then another, until he let himself fall in, completely disappearing into the liquid.

Rey yelped, and launched both hands inside, trying to help him surface. She felt his hair, and went down, trying to pull him by the ears if necessary. Finally, she was able to secure her grip around his neck and pull him up. She saw his face, almost as white as the water, emerging from the deep. His lips red, his marks and moles more pronounced around his  eyes.

It was painfully beautiful, like a marble statue of a long lost god.

“Thank you, I needed that” he whispered, just before opening his eyes and focusing on her. She knew how horrid she must have looked, dirty, plastered hair, blood smudges everywhere. She could use a bacta bath herself, come to think of it.

“You are welcome” she offered in reply. His eyes roamed her face, serene and thankful.”Now, get back down and stay quiet. Let the bath work”

Somehow, she couldn’t let him go and neither could he. That red thread she saw, on the road, on the arena, it was still there. She still felt it, binding them somehow. It had stretched, to the point of snapping, but it didn’t. She couldn’t.

It was there, in the quiet hours of dawn, with her arms elbow deep into an improvised bacta tank, holding on to her talk, dark, handsome prince, she realized her heart was already his. He smiled back at her, teeth crooked and wonderful - a Solo smile. No trace of Skywalker or Ren.

He propped his neck up an inch, and his lips brushed against hers, tender and warm. She couldn’t help to kiss him back, just as tenderly. It only lasted a moment, but for them it felt like a lifetime. She finally pulled away, looking into his dark eyes and into that vertigo of feelings that could not be spoken, only felt. She let him slide down gently into the bath once more, his face the only thing visible above the water.

She let herself slide down the wall of the tub and sat, pulling up her knees and resting her forehead on them. It was not the most comfortable position, but her body was so weary and heavy, that she couldn’t even considered moving.

The minutes passed, long and silent. She was almost falling asleep when she heard him calling.

“Rey?”

She thought about not answering. But there was something in his voice...

“Yes?” she answered.

There was a silent moment and Rey felt him deciding.

“Let me tell you now. About how people turn into other things”

 

_ (to be continued)  _

  



End file.
